I recently attended Westminster Health Forum policy conference, Next steps for healthy weight management in England - the new obesity strategy, primary care interventions, innovation in support and public engagement, and the role of industry and technology, 9th September 2020, to hear plans and debate around the government's obesity strategy.

COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of health as a protection against the virus.  Various research has shown that patients living with excess weight are at a great risk of serious illness or death if they catch the virus. 

Public Health England have launched their Better Health campaign, with a view to urging people to take stock of how they live their lives in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.  The Better Health app promotes evidence-based tools with advice on how to lose weight and keep it off, including a 12-week weight loss plan app.  The app is currently the highest downloaded app on the app store.  Find out more here: https://www.nhs.uk/better-health/

"Public health intervention can be highly effective in changing behaviors and contributing to healthy weight management."

Professor Maggie Rae, President, Faculty of Public Health

Jenny Oldroyd, Deputy Director, Obesity, Food and Nutrition, Department of Health and Social Care gave an overview on where the government plans stand in relation to their obesity plan.

Advertising

The government plan to release a response to the consultation on HFSS (High Fat Sugar Salt) advertising by the end of 2020.  A short consultation will be opened soon seeking feedback on how to go about introducing a total HFSS advertising restriction online.  It is envisaged that measures for both TV and online advertising will be implemented by the end of 2022.

Promotions

The consultation response on in-store promotions (at a prominent place in the store, by the checkouts or exits) is due to be published this year.

Out of Home Calorie Labeling

Whilst a government consultation on how to enforce out of home sector, the new legislation, when introduced, will require large restaurants, cafes and takeaways with more than 250 employees to add calorie labels to the food that they sell.

Alcohol Calorie Labeling

A consultation on calorie labeling for alcohol is due to be launched before the end of this year.

Front of Pack Labeling

A 4-nation consultation to gather views and evidence on the current "traffic light" labeling system is currently live and the Department for Health and Social Care would encourage people to get involved and share their input. Jenny Oldroyd also confirmed that there are plans to expand NHS weight management services, so more people get the support they need.  This will likely include more self-care apps and online tools.  Support for health and weight for disabled people will form part of the National Strategy for Disabled People.

Public health interventions that are brought in early can be very effective.  Professor Maggie Rae, President, Faculty of Public Health, believes that having an obesity coordinator working in every local area, similar to the government intervention to support the response to the HIV/AIDS crisis, would greatly transform things.

"Without funding for public health at a local level to support interventions, it limits the number of people living within populations to benefit from them."

Professor Maggie Rae, President, Faculty of Public Health

Dr Venita Patel, Community Paediatrician, Guy's and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust is a GP working as part of the Lambeth Specialist Healthy Weight Project.  This is a bespoke programme for children aged 4 to 12 years, with a BMI greater than the 98th or 91st Centile, and who have an additional diagnosis or issues.  They also offer Tier 2 Group Support for children who do not qualify for this programme.  Children accepted onto the programme usually spend one year receiving treatment.  Many of the children have early diabetes, and so the treatment plans are often targeted at reversing this. Their approach is mental health based, and they work with the family to identify small, sustainable changes that suit the family's way of life and culture.  Their aim is to support behavioural change with practical tools, frequent contact, encouragement and motivation, and employing innovative ideas. Each approach is bespoke for the family and child, and the service is designed to be accessible by being both community and outreach based.

The Healthy Schools Programme run by Leeds City Council is a hugely successful programme supporting schools to improve the health and wellbeing of their pupils.  One aspect of their service is the annual pupil perception survey that asks children and young people questions about their health and wellbeing in order to measure the impact of the Healthy Schools Programme and other city-wide interventions. Siobhan Jennings, Nutritionist and School Food Advisor, Health and Wellbeing Service, Leeds City Council, highlighted that, from the 2018/19 survey, 11% of pupils reported having been bullied because of their weight.  This social stigma surrounding weight emphasize the importance of tackling weight bias, and supporting body acceptance and positivity.

The Healthy Schools Programme provide training to schools and have recently launched a new training course for school staff on talking about children's weight.  The aim of this course is to support school staff in having difficult conversations with parents about a child's weight.  Another initiative, due to launch this autumn, is the Food Active Local Government Declaration on Healthy Weight.  It was adopted by Leeds City Council in 2018.  Find out more here: https://bit.ly/3m7S1jB

The use of data to tailor support for successful interventions and services is an area that shows great potential.  Zoe Griffiths, Global Director of Nutrition, WW (formerly Weight Watchers) shared an example of how they utilized data during lockdown to support their service users.  They noticed a shift in the needs of users, from tools to reduce stress to retaining a positive mindset.  In response to this, they worked with staff across their organization, including coaches, to meet the changing needs and to ensure that the support that they provide is current and up to date. Zoe Griffiths commented that WW are working towards, "being better at personalization but delivering services at scale."  Their innovative use of data during lockdown, and the flexibility to adapt and respond to the changing needs of service users, shows that there is great potential that could be adopted by health services in the future. 

Finally, "Now We're Cooking: Delivering National Curriculum through Food", a pioneering approach to tackling childhood obesity through education, developed by Charlton Manor primary, a local authority school based in Greenwich, might be more effective and deserve serious consideration.  Children are taught how to grow food, prep and eat healthy meals, for more on the school www.charltonmanorprimary.co.uk. The curriculum is Ofsted approved , and will be available online for interested  schools to evaluate and use.

Post Contributor:

Caitriona Fitzsimons Digital Reporter